The Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission voted on Jan. 15, 2026, to take no formal disciplinary action to decertify Jeremiah Johnson after a contested hearing over an off-duty discharge of his Jackson County-issued duty weapon in December 2024.

In an administrative hearing before Judge Alex Reager, the Department of Commerce & Insurance presented evidence that Johnson discharged his department-issued firearm into the ground while off duty at his parents’ home and initially lied about how the weapon fired. Department counsel told the commission the county terminated Johnson on Dec. 6, 2024, for an unauthorized discharge and urged commissioners to decertify him.

The department’s case included testimony from Chief Deputy Anthony Kane of Clay County, who recounted recovering Johnson’s handgun with 13 rounds in the magazine and said the respondent initially denied the discharge before admitting he had fired the weapon. Kane also prepared the Clay County incident report that was entered into evidence. Sergeant Daniel Cummings of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office testified that Jackson County’s review found a violation of the agency’s firearms policy and that he drafted and signed the termination letter.

Johnson testified in his own defense, describing the incident as the result of a personal and mental-health crisis. He told the commission that he fired his duty weapon into the ground as a “sign for help,” sought voluntary hospitalization that day, and subsequently engaged in counseling and medication management. Johnson also submitted letters from mental-health and military supervisors and documented work and training since the incident, and he said he had conditional job offers from the Veterans Affairs Police and from Smith County.

Department counsel said the record showed both a policy violation and concerns about integrity: “During our investigation, he did lie to [the Clay County deputy],” counsel said in closing, framing the termination as a disciplinary basis for decertification. Respondent counsel countered that Johnson’s actions occurred during an acute crisis and that he had since taken steps demonstrating remediation and fitness for duty.

Commissioners deliberated extensively, weighing the factual findings against the commission’s disciplinary options and the role of remediation and employer discretion. The panel adopted factual findings that included (a) an off-duty discharge of the duty firearm and (b) initial untruthfulness to responding officers, and it clarified the incident date in the record as Dec. 2, 2024. After discussion the commission voted to take no action to revoke or suspend Johnson’s POST certification. Instead, commissioners requested that any Tennessee law-enforcement agency that employs Johnson submit a progress report to the commission within six months documenting his status and any job-related oversight or accommodations.

The commission’s action preserves Johnson’s certification while placing oversight responsibility with employing agencies and signaling an expectation that the post-commission be kept informed of his progress in Tennessee employment. The commission’s written order, as discussed at the hearing, will be prepared and filed with the administrative procedures division as required by law.

The commission’s decision does not prevent individual agencies from making independent hiring or employment decisions; it instead left those prospective decisions to employers who will see the record and medical or personnel materials submitted as part of future background checks or preemployment reviews.

The commission closed the record and began deliberations after both parties submitted proposed findings and conclusions; the judge reminded members that the department bore the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence. The commission’s order will reflect the adopted findings and the request for a six-month progress report to the post commission from any Tennessee hiring agency.